2022-12-31-accounts - Living On Bereavement Service

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Trustees’ Annual Report LIVING ON BEREAVEMENT SERVICE

1st January 2022 to 31st December 2022

UK charity registration number: 1166617

This Trustees Annual Report (‘TAR’) has been prepared by and is the responsibility of the charity’s Trustees and has been approved by the Trustees for publication.

This TAR provides information intended to help the user understand how the charity’s aims fulfil its legal purposes, the activities it undertakes and what it has achieved, including:

particulars of the charity;
the purposes of the charity (including confirmation that the activities undertaken further the charity’s purposes for the public benefit);
the activities undertaken, finances and impact / results; and
a declaration by the Trustees.

1. Charity particulars

a) The following details relate to the charity:

Name	Living On Bereavement Service
Other names used	Living On
Registered charity number	1166617
Place of registration	UK
First registered	19 April 2016
Type	Charitable Incorporated Organisation
Governing document	Constitution
Registered address	11 The Brackens Orpington BR6 6JH
Operational address	The Parish Room Skibbs Lane Orpington BR6 7RH
Related entities	There are no related companies, subsidiaries or other entities associated with the charity.

Trustees’ Annual Report 1st January 2022 to 31st December 2022 Living On Bereavement Service UK charity registration number: 1166617

b) Trustees

Trustees are appointed by the existing Trustees in accordance with the charity’s constitution. Potential Trustees are invited to submit a short CV or similar demonstrating the skills they can bring and a letter detailing why they would like to join the Board of Trustees.

Trustees are selected taking into account the skills, knowledge and experience needed for the effective administration of the charity.

The following are the Trustees who acted during the year:

	Trustee name	Office (if any)	Dates acted	Appointed until
1	Louise Carr	Trustee / Chair	1stJan – 31stDec 2022	30thApril 2024
2	Gary Chapman	Trustee / Treasurer	1stJan – 31stDec 2022	30thApril 2024
3	Samantha King	Trustee / Secretary	1stJan – 31stDec 2022	31stOctober 2024
4	Heather Williams	Trustee	1stJan – 31stDec 2022	30thApril 2025
5	Robert Doherty	Trustee	1stJan – 31stDec 2022	30thJune 2024
6	Susan Wates	Trustee	1stJan – 31stDec 2022	30thJune 2025

There were no corporate trustees, trustees holding title to property or other trustees present or appointed in the year.

Also, no funds were held as custodian trustees on behalf of others.

c) Advisors

The charity has no appointed advisors.

2. Purposes of the charity

a) Overall

To protect and preserve the health and relieve mental and emotional suffering of bereaved children up to the age of eighteen in Bromley / Orpington and surrounding areas, and their families or anyone directly affected by that bereavement, by providing advice, support and guidance.

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Trustees’ Annual Report 1st January 2022 to 31st December 2022 Living On Bereavement Service UK charity registration number: 1166617

b) Public benefit

The Trustees have complied with their duty to have due regard to the guidance on public benefit published by the commission in exercising their powers and/or duties.

3. Activities

a) Operational activities

The charity operates two main services:

A buddying service which connects a recently bereaved family with a specially trained 'buddy' (that may be an employee of the charity or a trained volunteer) and who offers bespoke support to the family. The buddies can also work in and with schools and other appropriate settings, supporting teachers, carers and families within their setting; and
Grief Groups which typically (but not always) run weekly for a period of between 4 and 8 weeks and bring together groups of similar-aged children, young people and / or their families who have all been bereaved of a loved one, with the aim of showing them that they are not alone and to alleviate the feelings of isolation that are so often present with grief. These groups are often followed up with ongoing family days and events.

All of the services provided by the charity to children and families are free of charge.

Additionally, the charity provides support, resources and advice to professionals and family members working, assisting, caring for, or living with bereaved children.

In particular we support local schools to develop bereavement policies and provide tailored bereavement training packages, as well as direct support if that school or a class suffers a bereavement (such as a teacher, a pupil or the parent of a pupil etc.).

In respect of the buddying service, each volunteer buddy is asked to commit to a minimum of three hours per week. All our buddies have some form of professional qualification in Health or Education and/or are closely supported by someone that does. We also look to recruit volunteers who support the charity with administration and marketing tasks, and they provide equally valuable support.

The charity takes safety and security seriously and holds policies related to all such matters, including safeguarding, lone‑working and DBS checks for all relevant Trustees, staff and volunteers.

To continue managing the growth in and demand for the charity’s activities and services, the charity employed 3 part-time members of staff from April 2022 and for the remainder of the year. It is the charity’s intention to continue with these employment contracts on a long-term basis, always subject to financial capacity.

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Trustees’ Annual Report 1st January 2022 to 31st December 2022 Living On Bereavement Service UK charity registration number: 1166617

b) Finances

i. Trustee remuneration

The Trustees are not paid for their time or for the activities they undertake as Trustees. The Trustees are also not reimbursed any expenses related to those activities.

Where a Trustee provides services as a Service Provider (supplier) and not as a Trustee (for example, alongside and at the same time as other third-party therapists during Grief Group sessions), then a payment may be made to that Trustee in an amount that is in line with what other third-party providers are, or would also be, paid. Such amounts are regularly reviewed by the Trustees and any Trustee that may be in receipt of any such payment or any Trustee with any actual or perceived conflict of interest does not participate in any decision or discussion related to that payment, its amount, or its timing.

It is also the policy of the charity to provide suitable operational training and ongoing development to those who provide our services, and this may include training or development being provided to a Trustee, an employee, or a volunteer. As a result, an incidental benefit may arise to a Trustee by way of this provision, however any Trustee that may be in receipt of any such training or development does not participate in any decision related to that provision, nor are they treated any differently from any other similar employee or volunteer.

ii. Cash balance at end of period

This represents the seventh operational and accounting period for the charity and at the end of the period the charity’s cash balance was £52,993.87. The charity had no material outstanding liabilities, debts or other assets at the balance sheet date.

iii. Sources of funds

The charity receives all its funding via grants and donations from private individuals and private organizations and various fundraising activities and events. The charity does not undertake any professional fundraising activities and relies heavily on the generosity of those that become aware of the charity who are mostly local individuals, certain grant giving charities and local and regional businesses.

Those that have benefitted from the charity’s services often volunteer to raise money on our behalf and this has been a very welcome source of funds.

The charity has no single dominant source of funding although the charity was awarded a significant grant from the National Lottery Community Fund in the summer of 2021 in an amount of £100,000 to be received over a three-year period, specifically to fund the charity’s employment costs and some Grief Groups. Since the initial grant, the charity has successfully applied for further funding and the total amount now expected to be received is approximately £114,000 over the same three-year period.

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Trustees’ Annual Report 1st January 2022 to 31st December 2022 Living On Bereavement Service UK charity registration number: 1166617

Other than the grant outlined above, the majority of the funding received and raised by the charity is unrestricted.

iv. Restricted Income Funds

At the balance sheet date, of the total cash available of £52,993.87, an amount of £9,463.12 was considered to be restricted funds; split as HelpPoint funds of £3,232.00 and National Lottery Community Fund funds of £6,231.12.

During the year the charity received £nil funds in respect of the HelpPoint and spent £86.51 of those restricted funds.

During the year the charity received £36,258.50 funds from the National Lottery Community Fund and spent £35,403.83 of those restricted funds.

v. Reserves

The Trustees’ target is a reserve of six months’ operating expenditure, considered to be £30,000, to ensure that the charity can continue to operate, notwithstanding any unforeseen costs, and which policy remains under review. Although this target reserve amount was met as at the end of the year, due to the uncertain nature of the charity’s future income and the continued challenges in raising funds, there is no guarantee that this reserve can or will be maintained.

vi. Going concern

This is the seventh accounting period of the charity and we continue to build up a strong core of volunteers, processes and services and we have continued to be successful in various fundraising efforts. Provided the charity continues on its current path the Trustees have no reason to believe that it will not continue as a going concern in the future.

vii. Subsequent events

In 2021 the charity was successful in an application to the National Lottery Community Fund for a grant of £100,000 to be provided each six-months over a three-year period to fund the position of a Family Support Worker, and to run a number of bereavement groups for families and children. At the beginning of 2022 the charity was successful in its application to increase this grant to £106,300 to also cover certain costs of supervision. In 2023 the charity has successfully applied for further funding and the total amount now expected to be received is approximately £114,000 over the same three-year period.

In May 2023 the charity’s Lead Family Support worker announced her intention to resign from her position with effect from July 2023, and the charity is actively recruiting for a successor to commence in post not later than September 2023.

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Trustees’ Annual Report 1st January 2022 to 31st December 2022 Living On Bereavement Service UK charity registration number: 1166617

viii. Audit

The trustees believe that the charity is not required to undertake a statutory audit but is required to undertake an Independent Examination of its accounts. The Independent Examiner’s report is included within our annual accounts.

c) Summary of results / impact

There remains an ever-growing number of enquiries received by the charity daily and our service remains in high and increasing demand. There remain no other local children’s bereavement services that offer a similar approach, allowing indirect and creative ways to access emotions and feelings and for those services to be provided over multiple weeks and potentially months. There is also insufficient provision of all types of bereavement services and a lack of training and support for other professionals, in particular for teachers and schools.

The local hospice offers one to one counselling for bereaved children, but it is a considerable distance from Orpington and is typically hugely over-subscribed. In contrast we have continued to provide support within families’ homes (when and where possible) and we see children in school.

In the year the charity has continued to grow with a further substantial increase in referrals. In total we have provided support to approximately 500 families (which if we presume there are 2 or more children in each family this equates to over 1,000 children and young people ) since the charity commenced in 2016.

We continue to work in and with a very large number of local primary and secondary schools both when a bereavement has occurred but also to train and assist teachers and those working with children and young people to deal with bereavement within the school setting.

We have been able to recruit and retain volunteers to the charity, however 2022 was a difficult year for many and whilst we continue to work with our families, we continue to look for additional volunteers as demand for the charity’s services continues to increase. One key risk for the charity is over-commitment and the health and well-being of our dedicated volunteers is paramount.

Additionally, we have had help from fundraising volunteers, and increasingly from service users, who have supported us in running events to raise money for our service.

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Trustees’ Annual Report 1st January 2022 to 31st December 2022 Living On Bereavement Service UK charity registration number: 1166617

4. Declaration

The Trustees declare that they have approved the Trustees Annual Report above. Signed on behalf of the charity’s Trustees:

Signature
Full name	Gary Chapman
Position	Trustee and Treasurer
Date	29 October 2023

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Financial report

Living On Bereavement Service For the period ended 31 December 2022

Prepared on

11 June 2023

Registered charity number 1166617

Independent examiner’s report to the trustees of Living On Bereavement Service (the “charitable incorporated organisa>on” or “CIO”)

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Responsibili>es and basis of report

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Independent examiner’s statement

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Basis of Preparation.........................................................................................................................................4 Accounting Policies and Notes ........................................................................................................................5 Restricted Income Funds .................................................................................................................................7 Income Statement ............................................................................................................................................8 Balance Sheet..................................................................................................................................................9 Income Statement by Month ..........................................................................................................................10

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Living On Bereavement Service

The accounts present a true and fair view, the accounting policies have been consistently applied and there are no material estimates or changes to estimates contained.

The accounts have been prepared on the basis that the charity is a going concern as there are no significant doubts as to it's ability to continue into the foreseeable future.

The accounts have been prepared under the historical cost convention with items recognised at cost or transaction value, unless otherwise stated in the relevant note(s).

There have been no changes to accounting policies applied in these accounts as compared to the prior year.

These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in the Notes to the Accounts and comply with the charity’s governing document, the Charities Act 2011 and applicable accounting and reporting Statement of Recommended Practice as applicable to charities.

No events have occurred after the balance sheet date but before the accounts are authorised which relate to conditions that arose after the end of the reporting period, other than those already disclosed in these accounts.

Registered charity number 1166617

4/10

Living On Bereavement Service

Income is included in the Income Statement when:

the charity becomes entitled to the resources
it is more likely than not that the charity will receive the resources, and
the monetary value can be measured with sufficient reliability.

There has been no offsetting of assets and liabilities, or income and expenses.

Grants and donations are included in the period in order to match with related costs where possible, and are recognised in income when the general income recognition criteria are met.

Certain grants and donations are subject to one or more restrictions as to their use and these are recognised as 'Restricted Income Funds'.

Gift Aid receivable is included in income when:

the charity is successfully registered for Gift Aid with HMRC
there is a valid declaration from the donor
it is more likely than not that the charity will receive the funds

Any Gift Aid amount recovered is considered to be part of that gift and is treated as an addition to the same fund as the initial donation.

Donated goods are measured at fair value (the amount for which the asset could be exchanged) unless impractical to do so.

Goods donated for on-going use by the charity are recognised as tangible fixed assets unless their on-going or resale value is considered immaterial.

Gifts in kind for use by the charity are included in the accounts as income from donations when receivable unless their resale value is considered immaterial.

Donated services and facilities are included in the accounts when received at the value of the gift to the charity provided the value of the gift can be measured reliably.

At the start of the year the charity had 2 part-time employees, and from April 2022 and for the remainder of the year the charity had 3 part-time employees. The average monthly cost to the charity of staff wages in the year was £3,347.92.

The value of any voluntary help received is not included in the accounts.

This is included in the accounts when receipt is probable and the amount receivable can be measured reliably.

Registered charity number 1166617

5/10

Living On Bereavement Service

Liabilities are recognised where it is more likely than not that there is a legal or constructive obligation committing the charity to pay out resources and the amount can be measured with reasonable certainty.

Income is deferred in a period where it would otherwise materially distort the accounts if associated costs are recognised in the accounts in a different period.

Creditors are measured at settlement amounts less any trade discounts.

A liability is measured on recognition at its historical cost and then subsequently measured at the best estimate of the amount required to settle the obligation at the reporting date.

These are capitalised at cost if they can be used for more than one year, and cost at least £1,000.

Stocks held for sale as part of non-charitable trade are measured at the lower or cost or net realisable value.

Debtors (including trade debtors and loans receivable) are measured on initial recognition at settlement amount after any trade discounts or amount advanced by the charity. Subsequently, they are measured at the cash or other consideration expected to be received.

In April 2021 the charity received notification that it had been awarded a grant of £100,000, to be spread over 3 years, to fund the post of a part-time family support worker and to part-funds some Groups run by the charity. The first payment was received by the charity in August 2021 and further amounts have since been received in March 2022, August 2022 and March 2023. Through a further subsequent application the grant has since been increased and a total of £114,000 is currently anticipated to be received by the charity over the three-year life of the grant.

Registered charity number 1166617

6/10

Living On Bereavement Service

The charity has two sources of income that are restricted in their use and are therefore not freely available to the charity.

During the year the charity received £nil further funds in respect of the HelpPoint and spent £86.51 of the restricted funds.

During the year the charity received £36,258.50 further restricted funds from the National Lottery Community Fund and spent £35,403.83.

The National Lottery Community Fund grant is paid to the charity over six six-monthly instalments, and all amounts received are typically spent over the following six-month period. Approximately 78% of the total grant is spent on salary costs and approximately 22% is spent on materials, resources and other costs of providing the charity's services. The amount of restricted funds identified above represent a pro-rata amount of the grant payment received on 12 August 2022 that was remaining at the balance sheet date.

Registered charity number 1166617

7/10

Living On Bereavement Service

January - December 2022

----- Start of picture text -----
INCOME
2000 Direct contributions 33,543.76 6,104.96
2020 Fundraising contributions 16,393.92 12,780.06
2080 Grant Restricted Income 36,258.50 16,667.00
COST OF SALES
3000 Therapist costs 5,195.00 4,850.00
3010 Therapist costs (supervision) 2,885.00 1,350.00
3020 Materials and resources 847.85 1,043.02
3030 Staff and volunteer training 479.70 1,240.00
3040 Staff and volunteer payments 40,175.00 24,750.20
3050 Staff and volunteer other costs 2,082.36 371.97
3060 Equipment or venue hire 786.00 797.47
3070 Food and drink event costs 1,281.77 144.11
3080 Ancillary event costs 1,564.52 362.91
TOTAL
EXPENDITURES
3090 Travel 408.32 0.00
3150 Compliance or licence costs 201.60 237.85
3160 Interest and bank charges 65.20 0.00
3200 Advertising and printing 319.36 0.00
3210 IT, website and computing 1,181.89 746.97
3220 Stationery and office costs 696.59 28.20
3230 Telephone and communications 2,074.14 1,132.32
3250 Rent, repairs and facilities 1,845.60 2,976.00
3260 Health, safety and insurance 358.40 358.40
3270 Utilities 1,225.42 719.00
NET OPERATING INCOME
NET INCOME/(EXPENDITURE)
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8/10

Registered charity number 1166617

Living On Bereavement Service

As of December 31, 2022

FIXED ASSET	FIXED ASSET
CASH AT BANK AND IN HAND 1040 Cash in bank 52,752.38 31,082.90 1050 Pettycash 241.49 101.49

NET CURRENT ASSETS
NET CURRENT ASSETS(LIABILITIES)
TOTAL ASSETS LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES Accruals and deferred income 1,356.02 2,069.00
TOTAL NET ASSETS (LIABILITIES)
CHARITY FUNDS 1200 Opening Balance Equity 10,359.82 10,359.82 1220 Retained Earnings 18,755.57 24,311.97 Surplus/(Deficit) 22,522.46 -5,556.40

9/10

Registered charity number 1166617

----- Start of picture text -----
33,543.76 16,393.92 36,258.50 5,195.00 2,885.00 847.85 479.70 40,175.00 2,082.36 786.00 1,281.77 1,564.52 408.32 201.60 65.20 319.36 1,181.89 696.59 2,074.14 1,845.60 358.40 1,225.42
16,537.99 330.00 0.00 1,050.00 200.00 10.47 0.00 3,518.25 225.00 0.00 1.25 44.50 85.60 16.80 5.40 0.00 0.00 40.98 185.68 945.60 0.00 410.42
128.50 493.00 0.00 0.00 255.00 100.60 0.00 3,518.25 225.00 0.00 121.12 50.77 93.80 16.80 6.60 0.00 0.00 0.00 302.83 0.00 0.00 0.00
162.85 4,555.59 0.00 300.00 255.00 0.00 350.00 3,518.25 316.80 0.00 0.00 144.51 0.00 16.80 5.40 0.00 0.00 0.00 185.04 0.00 0.00 0.00
3,704.00 4,854.44 0.00 150.00 255.00 0.00 0.00 3,518.25 326.00 0.00 250.00 698.56 0.00 16.80 5.00 96.42 86.26 5.45 142.97 0.00 0.00 0.00
86.67 3,145.00 17,791.50 0.00 0.00 25.00 100.00 3,518.25 0.00 138.00 17.82 13.99 51.63 16.80 6.20 0.00 0.00 0.00 168.40 0.00 0.00 0.00
11,588.00 1,090.00 0.00 1,050.00 255.00 161.77 0.00 3,518.25 316.80 366.00 171.51 592.19 111.94 16.80 5.00 222.94 302.76 267.84 231.46 0.00 0.00 0.00
0.00 470.76 0.00 500.00 200.00 0.00 0.00 3,518.25 225.00 0.00 359.90 20.00 0.00 16.80 5.80 0.00 0.00 0.00 229.55 900.00 0.00 815.00
636.58 473.13 0.00 150.00 485.00 11.49 0.00 3,518.25 0.00 60.00 148.41 0.00 40.40 16.80 5.00 0.00 358.00 144.50 186.13 0.00 0.00 0.00
0.00 0.00 0.00 750.00 525.00 218.53 29.70 3,788.25 59.04 0.00 24.90 0.00 16.88 16.80 5.40 0.00 399.99 152.84 135.24 0.00 358.40 0.00
0.00 982.00 18,467.00 735.00 200.00 234.34 0.00 2,738.25 118.72 0.00 148.67 0.00 0.00 16.80 5.40 0.00 16.89 0.00 98.56 0.00 0.00 0.00
699.17 0.00 0.00 510.00 205.00 85.65 0.00 2,557.93 270.00 222.00 38.19 0.00 8.07 16.80 5.00 0.00 17.99 0.00 105.09 0.00 0.00 0.00
0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 50.00 0.00 0.00 2,944.57 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 16.80 5.00 0.00 0.00 84.98 103.19 0.00 0.00 0.00
2000 Direct contributions 2020 Fundraising contributions 2080 Grant Restricted Income 3000 Therapist costs 3010 Therapist costs (supervision) 3020 Materials and resources 3030 Staff and volunteer training 3040 Staff and volunteer payments 3050 Staff and volunteer other costs 3060 Equipment or venue hire 3070 Food and drink event costs 3080 Ancillary event costs 3090 Travel 3150 Compliance or licence costs 3160 Interest and bank charges 3200 Advertising and printing 3210 IT, website and computing 3220 Stationery and office costs 3230 Telephone and communications 3250 Rent, repairs and facilities 3260 Health, safety and insurance 3270 Utilities
INCOME COST OF SALES TOTAL EXPENDITURES NET OPERATING INCOME NET INCOME/(EXPENDITURE)
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